As Roberts's army occupies Pretoria, the Boer fighters in the Orange Free State retreat into the Brandwater Basin, a fertile area in the north-east of the Republic.

This offers only temporary sanctuary, as the mountain passes leading to it can be occupied by the British, trapping the Boers.

A force under General Archibald Hunter sets out from Bloemfontein to achieve this in July 1900.

The hard core of the Free State Boers under De Wet, accompanied by President Steyn, leave the basin early.

Those remaining falls into confusion and most fail  to break out before Hunter traps them.

Forty-five hundred Boers surrender and much equipment is captured but as with Roberts's drive against Kruger at the same time, these losses are of relatively little consequence, as the hard core of the Boer armies and their most determined and active leaders remain  at large.

Christiaan de Wet had headed west from the Basin. 

Although hounded by British columns, he succeeds in crossing the Vaal into western Transvaal, to allow Steyn to travel to meet their leaders. 

From late May 1900, the first successes of the Boer guerrilla strategy had been at Lindley (where five hundred Yeomanry had surrendered), and at Heilbron (where a large convoy and its escort had been captured) and other skirmishes resulting in fifteen hundred British casualties in less than ten days.

In December 1900, De la Rey and Christiaan Beyers attack and maul a British brigade at Nooitgedacht.

As a result of these and other Boer successes, the British, led by Lord Kitchener, mount three extensive searches for Christiaan de Wet, but without success.

However, the very nature of the Boer guerrilla war and the Boer raids on British camps are sporadic, poorly planned, and have little overall long-term objective, with the exception to simply harass the British.

This leads to a disorganized pattern of scattered engagements between the British and the Boers throughout the region.

Those Burghers who have stopped fighting form peace committees to persuade those who are still fighting to desist.

In December 1900 Lord Kitchener gives permission that a central Burgher Peace Committee to be inaugurated in Pretoria.

By the end of 1900 some thirty envoys have been sent out to the various districts to form local peace committees to persuade burghers to give up the fight.

Previous leaders of the Boers, like Generals Piet de Wet and Andries Cronjé, are involved in the organization.

Meyer de Kock is the only emissary of a peace committee to be convicted of high treason and executed by firing squad.

Lord Kitchener reports on January 9, 1901, that Christiaan de Wet has shot one of the "peace" envoys, and flogged two more, who had gone to his commando to ask the Burgher citizens of South Africa to halt fighting.

The Middelburg peace conference fails in South Africa, as Boers continue to demand autonomy.